


Storge

by kanshou87



Series: Four Loves [1]
Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Family Issues, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Luciferalwaysgetsitright, motivation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-12
Updated: 2016-12-12
Packaged: 2018-09-08 00:31:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8822560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kanshou87/pseuds/kanshou87
Summary: (Canon One-shot based on episode 2 x 07)Have you wonder what went through Chloe's head when Lucifer said to her in the kitchen?





	

**Author's Note:**

> Storge (/ˈstɔrdʒiː/; στοργή, storgē), also called familial love, is the Greek word for natural affection—such as the love of a parent towards offspring, and vice versa. 
> 
>  
> 
> This is my first attempt on Lucifer fics. Shout out to enkiduu for being such a wonderful beta and friend.

 

> “ _We don't all turn into our parents, Detective.”_
> 
>                          ~Lucifer S01E10

Chloe Decker felt her heart pound like a war drum as soon as she stepped onto the stage. Her grip on a two-page audition script tightened as she plodded to the centre. Her eyes scanned the near-empty auditorium for her mom, who to her disappointment was not there. However, she was not surprised at all. Penelope Decker was a very busy woman. She was currently at the peak of her career, occupied by multiple roles in famous TV shows and A-rated movies. Her big ticket to stardom had been when she played the lead for last summer's blockbuster movie, _Showdown in Demon Town_. Her performance had opened many windows of opportunity in the filming industry including favors from her network to give her daughter a shot to start her own acting career.

Hell, for as long as Chloe could remember, her mother had been grooming her to be her protégé since she was five. As early as seven years old, Chloe had been sent to acting and beauty classes, which to Chloe's dismay were an excruciating ordeal. She had no problems with the lessons themselves, but she loathed the attention that she was getting. Being the Penelope Decker's daughter was more of a curse than a blessing, especially when she had competitive peers and limited casting spots.

"Miss Decker?"

The voice of the panelist pulled her back to reality.

“I’m so sorry.  My name is Chloe Decker. I am auditioning for the role of Julia Bard.”

“Very well, Miss Decker.  Please proceed.”

Chloe drew in a deep breath and started reciting the lines with all the confidence she could muster. This was her moment to shine and make her parents proud. She was not going to let her parents down again, not after she’d failed to secure a spot in one of Chicago’s local production show when she was ten. It had been her first failure but she was extremely embarrassed about it. Chloe could not face her instructors when she knew about the results. They always had high hopes for Chloe to excel in the film industry like her mother, but unfortunately she failed to meet that unspoken expectation. When the instructors got wind of the casting result, words of encouragement were exchanged between them.

Her mother’s reception was equally bad. She could recall the expression on her mother’s face when she tearfully broke the news to her. As Chloe has expected, Penelope was utterly disappointed with her daughter but she skillfully covered it up with honey-coated white lies. Although she was seven, Chloe was well aware of her mother’s true feelings despite the façade she wore in front of her peers. Her suffering prolonged with longer hours of practice and extra classes, of which her instructors took the advantage to charge her mother through the roof. Acting was a lucrative business, after all.

After fifteen minutes of adrenaline, her audition was over. The panelist thanked her and she retreated back to the backstage, waiting patiently for the results.

The next three hours were the most agonizing thing she had experienced.

A young teenager in red called the participants to the front and formed a line.

“As you all know, the role for this show is extremely limited. I admit that picking the right person to play the main roles is indeed very challenging.”  

The head of the panelist scanned the row of hopeful people on the stage for a moment before continuing.

“We have decided to pick only three people for today’s casting. Once I call your name, could you please proceed to the front?”

Everyone nodded anxiously.

Chloe’s heart was racing as seconds passed.

The lady beside the announcer took the microphone and spoke.

“Freddie Smith, please step forward. You will be playing the role of Daniel Parrish.”

A man in his twenties emerged from the beeline with a wide smile on his face following an echoing clapping.

“Next is Amelia Paula. You will be playing the role of Susan Millie.”

Chloe breathing deepened as the lady in front of her flipped through the pages.

“For the role of Julia Bard…”

A deafening silence followed.

“Chloe Decker, could you please step forward?”

Chloe was so shocked when she heard her name being called.

She could not believe her ears. After all the blood, sweat and tears… she finally got to stand in front of the stage proudly and show the audience her talent. She felt a rush surge through her body as a loud applause exploded behind her.

Her victory was short lived. The announcer panicked and corrected herself. “I’m so sorry, Miss Chloe. I got the wrong person. Olivia Ballie, could you step forward, please?”

A loud screech followed as a petite girl dashed to the front, bowing her head to the judges, profusely thanking them for choosing her.

At that moment, Chloe felt like the whole world came crashing down. Tears of devastation trickled down her reddened cheeks. She felt her self-confidence mercilessly shredded apart by the announcer’s mistake. She retreated to the backstage, head hung low in sorrow of her repeated failure. As pathetic as it sounded, Chloe could not bring herself to congratulate all the three successful candidates without breaking down herself.

Her fingers trembled as she slowly punched buttons on her cellphone while imagining her mother’s disappointed face.

How many times did she need to fail before Penelope Decker realized her daughter was a completely useless and incompetent...

“Hi, Miss Decker. Can I speak to you for a minute?”

Chloe looked up and saw a chubby man in his forties standing right in front of her. She wiped her teary face with the back of her hand, before greeting him.

“I’m so sorry that you have to see me in this state. May I help you?”

“Let me introduce myself. I’m Rody from Independent Space Production Studios. I came here to watch the auditions this morning and could not help to notice how splendid your performance was.”

Chloe scoffed.

“The result of the audition showed otherwise. Sorry, Mr. Roddy. If you are looking for real talent, I suggest you go look somewhere else. I am no Penelope Decker. I am not good enough to be cast…”

“I think you have mistaken my intentions. I am genuinely interested to hire you, Miss Decker. I have a movie in the making and I was hoping you could join us. We have been searching for the lead actress for months now without success. Those who we have approached us mentioned that our offer is too low to make the cut.”

“Do I need to audition for this role? As you are well aware, I’m currently not in the best condition to go through another ordeal.”

“No worries, Miss Decker. You have proven your skills on the stage just now. Besides, I think you are very eager to start your acting career. Am I right?”

Mr. Roddy continued to elaborate on the lead character’s description, to which Chloe listened attentively. By the sound of it, the requirements were pretty straight forward and normal, with the exception of a topless fifteen minute scene in the opening.

Chloe went silent for a while.

The man was making an offer she could not refuse.

It was a one-time opportunity and a chance to redeem herself. She could not imagine the amount of disappointment she had to experience before she could actually give acting a shot.

The fear of mother’s rejection drove her to sign the contract with Roddy later that evening. At the same time, Penelope Decker was thrilled when she heard about the daughter being cast in the low-budget movie.

When Chloe saw her mother’s happy face, she thought she finally had done one thing right.

Or so she thought.

xxx

“Cut! All right, great job everyone.”

Chloe drew a deep breath and collected her discarded top from the side of the bed.

The shooting was finally over.

Chloe had never been more relieved. She retreated to her personal changing room with a white robe draped over her shoulders. She sat in front of the vanity and looked at herself. Her male co-star, Johnny Young, left a patch of love bites near the nape of her neck while performing in front of the camera just now.

Chloe had originally refused the idea of the making love scene and suggested the make-up artist to do some cover up magic. However, the director, Mr. Roddy, insisted upon live action to give the audience a realistic feel. With much reluctance, she agreed to proceed. However, deep down she felt her pride had been shattered.

She wiped a stray tear from her face whilst trying to compose herself.

“Get it together, Chloe. You need to say strong for mom,” she said to herself.

“Hi, Chloe.”

Chloe jumped when she heard a male voice emerged from behind.

She turned around and saw her dad at the door with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

“Dad!”

Chloe ran to his dad and wrapped her arms around his waist. It had been almost two years since she last saw his father. John Decker was recently promoted to become the head of LAPD investigation squad after he successfully requested his transfer back to Los Angeles.

“I missed you, my little monkey.”

“I missed you too, Dad.”   

Both father and daughter stood there in an inseparable hug. After a while, Chloe broke the embrace and took the bouquet from his father’s hand. John Decker smiled watching her daughter inhale the sweet scent of sunflowers he bought from the neighbouring florist on the way here.

“Thanks a lot, dad. These are lovely.”

“My little monkey needs to be rewarded for her efforts, no?”

John Decker patted her back and signaled her to rest on the sofa.

“Erm… so… how have you been?”

“We are wrapping up today. It’s finally over.”

“That’s great.”

John Decker gazed at her daughter for awhile. A large hand reached out to her cheeks and cupped them gently.

“What is wrong, Chloe? Why are you upset…”

Her father’s words faltered when he sported the bruises on her neck.

“Chloe…”

Chloe knew she couldn’t escape her father’s sharp eyes and spilled everything out tearfully. John Decker was mortified about the truth and silently cursed his wife for pushing their daughter to this state. He loved Penelope for being ambitious but never thought she would impose her dreams and such a burden onto her daughter instead.  

“Chloe, I won’t judge you for what you have done. However, if you ever feel strongly about something, act on it. Never deny your instincts.”

“I can’t, Dad. If I stop now, Mum will be upset. You guys have spent so much on me to do this.”

John Decker placed both his hands at her daughter’s shoulder and gave her a firm grip.

“Chloe, never ever do things for others. You have so much ahead of you, Chloe. Stop chasing other people’s dreams. Make yours come true.”

Chloe felt deeply moved by her father’s words.

All this time, she had valued others’ thoughts and wants over her own, thinking she needed to adhere to the social norm to live up to others’ expectations. But she was wrong.

Chloe knew that no matter  what happened, her family, especially her father, would have her back and love her unconditionally.  And she was very grateful for that.

xxx

Chloe pushed the stack of greasy plates aside while flipping the last piece of French toast from the pan. She couldn’t help but notice Lucifer’s gaze on her. After Trixie’s departure, he had been acting all uneasy around her. She waited patiently for Lucifer to break the awkward silence between them.

“I don’t care much about my dad… but clearly, you care about yours.”

Chloe looked at Lucifer inquisitively.

_Where is he coming from?_

“Hmm…”

“So…What I am trying to say is… I think he would be proud of you.”

_“Remember, little monkey. Daddy is very proud to have a daughter like you.”_

The words of Chloe’s passing father rang in her head.

Lucifer’s words have opened the floodgates of emotion deep inside her and Chloe couldn’t help but shed a tear upon hearing his remark.

“My apologies, Detective. I did not mean to hurt you.”

“No, no… It’s.”

_It’s been a while since someone has said that to me… Not even Mom or Dan…_

Lucifer got fidgety at Chloe’s reaction and frowned.

“Then why are you crying?”

_Oh you dumb moron… How can you not see how much your words mean to me? Argh..._

“Oh, shut up Lucifer.”

Chloe embraced him with a bone crushing hug and cried her heart out. Her dad might not be here anymore but she had Lucifer to give all the emotional support she needed.

Dad was right.

She was indeed loved.

By a selfless man who claims to be the Devil.

The End.

  
  
  
  



End file.
